PopMatters’ staff of metal experts present their top picks from a year that offered a standout work of Christian “progressive death metalcore”, a philosophical treatise on “Transcendent Black Metal”, and one amazing debut.

This is the best year for metal music we've seen in a very long time. Like other watershed years, such as 1983, 1984, and 1991, it's partially a case of artists peaking at the same time, and 2007 was no exception, unleashing a wave of superb releases from January straight through November.

It seems every year I say it, but this year it's truer than ever: this was one hell of a year for metal. If you think the Mastodon record is good (which it is) just wait 'til you hear this list’s top three.